Suez Canal

Our schedule stated that we were visiting the Suez Canal on our way to El Arish. We had heard that the Suez Canal was not really a tourist site, due to security. So we didn’t really know what to expect on our stop. I thought maybe we would stand on the side or over a bridge, hear a lecture and that would be it. Well, we quite surprised to see our boat waiting for us; we were going on the canal.

The Suez Canal is 190 km long, and 80-90 meters deep. Approximately 40-50 ships pass though every day. The ships coming from the Red Sea usually have priority over the ships from the Mediterranean, as their ships are carrying more cargo. The ships are first lined up, so several pass through in one direction and then the other.

We passed the Suez Canal control center.

And then went out near the canal itself. (Our boat was docked in one of the side “lakes,” where ships could pull over if they breakdown, etc.)

The ships are escorted by two boats who communication with the ships captain to help navigate through the canal.

It’s hard to describe how enormous those cargo ships were. Each one of those boxes would barely fit on the back of a semi truck. It made those large cruise ships seem tiny.